It's just about opening time!

Welcome new and returning members to the club! We thought last year’s membership numbers were mind boggling, but this year we’ve passed that record with just under 1,600 members as of the beginning of December. Just a few years ago we had 500 members and thought that was amazing. Each year we’ve continued to grow by offering a great outdoor winter experience to people in Kamloops and surrounding areas.

With all the new and happy faces we also have many people who aren’t used to being on the trails yet. They might not know exactly where they are going, and they might just be overwhelmed with how amazing our trails are. Do you remember that feeling of awe when you’re looking at one of our gorgeous views? This is our new and wonderful reality. New people are discovering the joys of cross country skiing and showshoeing and that is a fantastic thing. If you’re a seasoned veteran and you see someone going the wrong way on the trails or not understanding what to do, let’s show them some kindness and patience and help them out. If you’re new, please ask. There are many members who would love to help you out and our staff are ready and eager to answer all of your questions. It is through new members that the club continues to grow, refresh our ideas and our commitment to what we do, and our resources continue to be improved.

So let’s all be kind and enjoy our time on the trails.

When do we open?

Follow our social media feeds for up to date information on when we will be opening. If you don’t have social media you can still see Facebook information on our website.

Fun Snow Fact: Did you know that 10 cm of light and fluffy snow compresses down to a tiny 1 cm when it gets packed? We still need more snow!

A Note about Lessons

We are working hard behind the scenes to get our lesson registration up and running. Keep checking in with our social media and on our website for updates and links. You can also email info@overlanderskiclub.com if you have any questions.

Ski League Coordinator Desperately Needed!

Help! We are still looking for a ski league coordinator! If you are fun-loving, organized and can work in a team environment with parents and coaches this is a rewarding opportunity. A description or responsibilities is listed below. Please contact Dillon Stuart dillon.Thomas.Stuart@gmail.com as soon as possible if your are interested in this opportunity. This is a paid position with flexible work hours that can be tailored to fit just about anyone’s schedule. This person doesn’t need to be a parent or part of the program!

Time Frame: Immediately to March

Time Commitment: 3-4 hrs/wk

Number of positions: 1

$20/ hour

• Be the main point of contact for coaches, parents, volunteers, and board of directors for matters related to the Ski League
• During fall season, contact previous year’s coaches to determine coach availability for the upcoming season.
• Work with coaches to organize class lists based on registration information and evaluation information from previous season.
• Provide the group lists to the coaches prior to the start of the season and organize in the team snap application
• Order materials from CCBC based on numbers provided by the Materials Organizer.
• Encourage volunteerism and timely email/phone communication with participant families.
• Determine equipment purchases needed for the program.
• Encourage coaches to take further training courses
• Work with coaches to ensure they have taken minimum training, have their coaching licence up to date and have current criminal record checks submitted to the club
• Encourage participation in club events
• Help to ensure consistent evaluation of skills among groups.
• Promote races and social activities (picnic, night ski, races, etc).
• Arrange any needed pre season meetings with the coaches or parents
• Cancel classes when the conditions are unsuitable or considered unsafe.
• Recruit successor

Are you interested in coaching a recreational program for kids?

We are looking for someone to take on hosting a rec league program for kids. Must have a coaching background or be willing to take some online training, pass a criminal records check and provide proof of vaccination.

More info here:

The Youth Recreation Program is a fun, introductory recreational program for youth ages 8-12 with little-to-no skiing experience, who wish to learn or improve their classic and skating techniques in a fun, social, group environment through a season of coached sessions. This program is especially suitable for late entry participants. The Youth Recreation program participants meet from January to March, Saturdays ONLY. Starts at 10:00 AM and finishes between 11:30-12:00 (depending on the coach). The emphasis here is on fun times and just going out to ski with no racing or competitive pressure.

A note that we are not accepting kids into this program yet. We need to establish a coaching roster first, then see who from ski League wants to join, then if there are spots we could open registration.

CANSI Instructor’s Course

How about joining the wonderful world of Nordic Ski Instruction? We are excited to be hosting a Level 1 CANSI instructor course January 7-9. This course will give you the skills and pedagogy to teach beginners to skate or classic ski while developing your own skiing.

Register at https://cansi.ca/members-app/event/detail/20419

or email info@overlanderskiclub.com if you have any questions.

Tips for a safe ski season

As we get ready to open for the season this is a great time to remind everyone to be prepared for skiing or snowshoeing at Stake Lake this winter. Each year our staff have had to help skiers and snowshoers who find themselves too far out on the trails than they were prepared for. Some are lost, some are exhausted, and some are injured. The Stake Lake Trails network covers a vast area, and people need to be prepared. Here are some tips:

• Plan your day according to your skill level, fitness level, and the amount of daylight available. Starting on a long trip around Sidewinder at 3 pm on Classic skis when you’ve never done it before can leave you exhausted on a very long trail in the dark (and it is pitch dark away from the lake).
• Be prepared – have a map with you, have a phone and the number for the ticket booth programmed in it (250 372 5514). Make sure your phone is fully charged. Know what time the ticket booth closes that day. There are also areas around Sidewinder where there is no cell service.
• Be prepared for weather! Temperatures drop quickly as the sun is setting. Make sure you are fully prepared for time in the woods. Bring warm clothes, snacks and water.
• Know and accept your skill level. If you have never skied a long distance plan a route that allows lots of access points where you can take a short cut back to the parking lot. Ask staff to suggest routes for you.
• Snowshoers! Follow trails, not other snowshoers! Snowshoers like to go off trail, and that makes other snowshoers think their footprints are the actual trail. Know where you are!
• Tell someone where you are going.

• You can access digital trail maps through Trailforks (there may be a cost) and other options which we will cover in future emails.

Trail improvements

Our new lighting on Bronco is complete! Big thank you to Klaus Voss for his time in planning and organizing getting the new Bronco loop lights complete. This was a huge project and we appreciate Klaus’s expertise and commitment to getting it done. Peter Voss and Denis Lowen also contributed significant time to the project. We are very grateful for the large amount of work they put into volunteering to make this project happen.

We also have new trails this year thanks to the hard work of Tim Cole and his crew and volunteers. We will have more information on these trails and an exciting “Name the trail” contest coming soon in an upcoming email.

An outhouse on the Dog Trails!

We were thinking of having a toilet paper cutting to commemorate this significant milestone but decided that maybe it wasn’t the best idea. But we are thrilled to announce that the new outhouse is now in place which will be a welcome thing for all the people who use the dog trails.

A note to volunteers

ATTENTION ALL VOLUNTEERS! Dave Hallinan, our Treasurer, requests that ALL volunteer and vendor expenses be sent to the Treasurer email treasurer@overlanderskiclub.com

Board Information:

We are announcing our AGM on March 7, 2022 at 7pm via zoom. Save the date!

The board will be having their yearly strategic planning session on January 17th, 2022. This is where we will be assessing where we are in our current strategic plan and updating our plans for the future. Here we discuss things like future plans and priorities for the Day Lodge and other facilities, managing low snow years, programs we want to offer and events we want to host, the life span of our equipment and plans for replacement if required. If you have suggestions please feel free to send them to info@overlanderskiclub.com.

You can view our current 2020 - 2021 strategic plan here. Sorry it's sideways. We'll get the new one up properly this year.

Upcoming dates (more coming!):

To Be Determined          Opening Day

January 7 - 9, 2022        CANSI Instructor's Course

January 10, 2022           Board Meeting (7 pm via zoom)

January 17, 2022           Board Strategic Planning Session (via zoom)

February 7, 2022           Board Meeting (7 pm via zoom)

March 7, 2022                OSC AGM (7 pm via zoom)

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